THE SERPENT SHED SILVERChristopher Charles Curtis

PAST EXHIBITIONS

In The Serpent Shed Silver, Curtis' second one-person exhibition at CANVAS, the artist presents his most recent visions in a series of drawings, meticulously rendered in graphite on paper.

In this series, Curtis expands upon his unique use of symbolism to illustrate the notion of the dissolution of the ego. Pulling references from old photographs, Gnostic beliefs and personal mythology, the artist portrays the ego in a variety of phantasmagoric forms in order to fully grasp its effect on the psyche.

Thorn, 2016-18, graphite, colored pencil on paper, 16 x 16 in.

ABOUT THE ARTISTChristopher Charles Curtis was born in 1981 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.After high school Chris moved to San Francisco where he attended the Academy of Art University.While taking classes at the Academy, he gained an interest in the photo-real style of painting and pursued a similar style in his drawings.In 2004 Chris received a BFA from the Academy. Chris has exhibited his work in several group and solo shows throughout the United States, including the solo exhibition Natures Black Crown, Tales of Restoration at CANVAS ArtSpace. In 2015 he won the Acker Award in San Francisco for visual arts. He currently lives and works in Hendersonville, NC.

2017 SOLO EXHIBITION - CHRISTOPHER CHARLES CURTIS

Nature's Black Crown: Tales of Restoration

In this body of work, Curtis presents a complex series of illustrated fairytales that allude to a dark overarching narrative. Nature’s Black Crown reimagines the ecological catastrophe that devastated the midwest during the 1930’s, commonly referred to as the “Dust Bowl,” and through elaborate story telling, interpolates a dark universe that explores the relationship between man and nature.

Curtis’s intensive and detailed drawings are often sourced from found photographs, and are completed in graphite, colored pencil, watercolor and acrylic. Those drawn on antique paper or book covers, evoke a disquieting archaeological record of a bygone era, prophesizing our own corruption of power. Although the drawings are inspired by an actual historical event, the images are are derived from fictional narratives that the artist has written over the past ten years. Curtis states, “Rather than writing the story, I wanted to present it in a series of mysterious images to elicit the viewer's intuitive response.”​